Posted by Scott on 10/8/2011, 3:16 pm, in reply to "Gifted With LD?"75.245.229.109

Your son is obviously gifted, and his score in processing speed is indeed significantly lower than his other cognitive abilities. This may or may not be a sign of a learning disability. A relatively low score in processing speed can be caused by several factors including visual memory issues, fine-motor coordination delays, visual-motor integration difficulties, or (quite often) ADHD. But even though his ability to process quickly and efficiently may be considerably lower than his other abilities, it is important to realize that it is still well within the average range and would not likely be the full cause of any academic failure. It is very common for gifted individuals to become so accustomed to things coming quickly and effortlessly that they learn to actively or passively avoid anything requiring sustained effort, both because it is unpleasant and because it may make them feel or look less intelligent. This is a very common form of perfectionism coupled with fear of failure that plagues so many gifted students and may be why teachers often view them as being lazy at times. I would advise you to investigate treatable causes of your son's apparent processing speed issues (such as ADHD) but also help him to understand that certain tasks or subjects will naturally require considerably more effort on his part. You might also even consider therapeutic intervention to help him to better understand, accept, and cope with his discrepant skills and abilities. It is very unlikely that he would ever qualify for or need special education services, so it will be very important for him to find other ways of coping with his difficulties. Gifted students are often quite adept at finding their own coping strategies when they are willing to do so. Good luck!